The tide has suddenly turned in the war in Europe on December 16, 1944. The hard-hit German Army has secretly assembled a massive force. They slam through woods in Belgium-Luxemburg and hit the Allies with a steel fist. In the middle of one of the coldest winters in history, the front line is buckling. The enormous bulge in Allied lines gives the battle its name. The 101st Airborne Division and elements of Patton's 10th Armored Division are rushed to stop the onslaught. In the town of Bastogne, the Germans surround the Americans and begin to tighten the noose. It looks like no one can relieve them until the Americans send in their most aggressive warrior - George S. Patton - to beat back the enemy assault with the best machine in his arsenal - the M-4 Sherman tank.

March 1876 - Alexander Graham Bell struggles with an invention that may change the world. Early nineteenth century America is experiencing an explosive growth and expansion across a vast landscape. A technology is needed to meet the communication needs for this new nation, and Bell is convinced that he can transmit speech over great distances. Early telegraphs can only transmit one message over one wire at one time, and the message must be coded and decoded one letter at a time. Bell begins work on a multiple telegraph, but his genius will lead to a different revolutionary device that will carry thousands of simultaneous messages and shape the future - the telephone.

February 18, 1563 - Orleans, France - An assassin lies in wait for his victim. In the killer's hand is a deadly new weapon, a machine that can destroy lives in a flash. He hopes to strike a blow for religious freedom. His weapon is an invention from the master of art and engineering, Leonardo Da Vinci. It is a device so fearsome that European rulers move to ban it. In the hands of this assassin it will eliminate the Duke of Guise and raise the stakes in France's long and bloody civil war.

April 1917 - the most feared pilot of World War I is at the controls of the best fighter plane of the day. A 24-year-old legend at the top of his game, Manfred Von Richthofen is up against a new generation of enemy aircraft. It will demand all of the Red Baron's considerable skill just to survive.

March 16th, 1988 – In the Iraqi city of Halabja thousands unknowingly face a hellish death. The man responsible for this unspeakable horror is notorious Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein. In an act of brutality he unleashes a massive chemical weapons attack designed to wipe-out an entire city of innocent civilians.

January 7, 1610 - Galileo, one of history's most brilliant men, trains a new invention on the night sky. His machine is the telescope, and what it reveals will challenge the Church's view of the universe and the very word of God. Galileo is about to unlock the secrets of the heavens, but his work will put him in mortal danger and lead him to a pivotal moment of trial by the Holy Roman Inquisition.

October 1962 - For thirteen days a desperate showdown puts the world on the brink of nuclear war. One man hopes to end this high-stakes gamble, but President John F. Kennedy can not afford to make any mistakes. Only one machine can make this happen, the RF-8 Crusader, capable of low-level reconnaissance photography needed to prove what the Soviet Union is up to on Castro's Cuba. Failure is unthinkable.

1951 - the British Grand Prix in Silverstone, England. One man - Enzo Ferrari - will push his team to the brink for a win. His machine, the 375 Formula One racecar, has enough performance and power to be competitive. But Ferrari is going up against the world champion Alfa Romeo team and their driver, Juan Manuel Fangio, widely considered to be the best Formula One driver in the world. Ferrari is betting his reputation, and perhaps his future as an automaker, on a strategy he considers a secret weapon - his car should need less fuel to make it through the race than the car of his nemesis, Alfa Romeo. If he's right, he could win the race and make a name for himself, if he's wrong, it could be another humiliating and devastating defeat.